Man admits guilt in Lenexa double homicide

A 28-year-old man pleaded guilty Friday to stabbing two men to death while burglarizing their Lenexa home in July 2014.

Alex Brune, whose trial was to begin Monday in Johnson County District Court, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree felony murder in the deaths of Brian Baskind, 47, and his 79-year-old stepfather, Clifford Preston.

Each count carries a sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. Assistant district attorneys Sarah Hill and Ann Henderson said they will ask that the sentences run consecutively.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 18.

Brune, also of Lenexa, was shot and wounded by one victim and called police to the crime scene in the 8500 block of Hallet Street. Police found Baskind and Preston dead in the basement.

Brune later told police that he had been kidnapped from his home by a stranger armed with a gun.

He said he was driven to the house on Hallet and taken to the basement. He told detectives that he grabbed a large knife and stabbed both men while trying to escape. One of the men shot him in the abdomen during the escape attempt, he said.

Hill said Friday that family members of the victims supported the plea agreement.

This story was originally published February 26, 2016 at 11:23 AM with the headline "Man admits guilt in Lenexa double homicide."